Local group wants Vernon to live up to its Trails Capital of BC moniker
Vernon has already been dubbed the Trails Capital of BC and a local group want to expand on that.
Members of the Ribbons of Green Trails Society are going to a city council meeting on Monday, Oct. 23, to propose a plan for an active transportation network to make most of the city safely accessible by foot and bicycle. Data to be presented by the society shows that residents want more trails and safe routes.
“The route recommendations proposed in this document could make a substantial and desirable difference to the lives of residents, tourism and the local economy, as well as the future of Vernon as the Trails Capital of BC,” reads their proposal.
The society says the plan lines up perfectly with the city’s Climate Action Plan which calls for the installation of more active transportation trails. It also says demand is high.
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Vernon already has a number of trails that connect notable city sites; Downtown South and the Okanagan Rail Trail are connected by the Polson Park trail and Kal Lake Road, Downtown North and the Village Green Centre are connected by 29 and 30 Avenue, 25 Avenue connects Downtown West to the Okanagan Landing and 48 Avenue connects the Foothills to Pleasant Valley Road.
The city’s plan already establishes the further instalment of trails to connect Whitecourt to Foothills Place, Valleyview Place to Commonage Trail and F.B. Jacques Park to Centennial Drive.
The society’s proposal asks for a safe corridor to connect Downtown Vernon to the North end of town and the Foothills. They further ask for safe routes to be put in place to connect Middleton Mountain, Blue Jay, South Vernon, the Rise, Bella Vista, Adventure Bay, the Commonage and Predator Ridge neighbourhoods.
The Ribbons of Green Trails Society was established in 1992 when municipalities and the Regional District of the North Okanagan created a committee to develop a plan for a network of parks, and trails. Ever since the society has continued to develop this plan and continues their work to make Vernon and the North Okanagan “a great place to live” as seen in their proposal.
Their proposal goes into further detail about their proposed safe corridors and is accessible online here.
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